A Bond Like Brothers
by ValerieViolette
Summary: A two year-delayed reunion tends to make certain people just a little bit more sentimental than usual...


"Those guys really know how party," Sanji commented as he lit his third cigarette for the day.

"Huh?"

"Do you not listen to anything anyone says to you, _Marimo_?"

"No, just you," Zoro smirked as he took a swig from his fourth bottle of sake for the night. Sanji made an annoyed grunt as he stared down at the green haired man sitting on the stairs leading down to Sunny's lawn deck.

"You shit—"

Sanji was cut off by the sounds of the rest of the crew's cheers and laughs. It was near deafening, though the two men by the foremast were _very_ used to it. (But just imagine if they were the size of a regular pirate crew! A hundred or more men; not just _nine_! Although, Franky is big enough to count for _at least_ 20 men.) "Are you guys ready?" Usopp yelled as he steadied his aim. He pointed his slingshot high, up to the star-speckled night sky. "Steady, steady…" he mumbled to himself. The (slightly) drunken cheers of the crew mingled with his shout of "And go!"

The whistle of his shot was louder than the crew as the thing spiraled up higher and higher and higher until—

"_Wow, Usopp! That's amazing!_" Chopper's high-pitched voice yelled. A mixture of red, orange, and yellow lights scattered across the night sky. "_Fireworks!_"

"_Suuuuuuuper!_" Franky agreed. The lights casted a strange shadow all of the crew, making all of them seem more scary and menacing than they really were. Nami was smiling from ear to ear, Robin laughing her usual soft giggle; Luffy and Chopper applauded Usopp for his trick (Luffy, of course, broke his applause to stuff one more large piece of meat into his mouth); Franky and Brook laughed with their usual booming laughs, Franky dancing along to Brook's music.

"Happy reunion, everyone!" Usopp called out. Everyone smiled even wider (Luffy nearly choked Usopp to death by hugging his neck) and they all started to dance and laugh and cheer and celebrate their reunion, two years late.

"Were you going to say something to me, Number 7?" Zoro asked with another gulp of sake.

"Don't call me that, Mosshead!"

"Don't call me 'Mosshead' then, 7!"

"I'll call you whatever I want, _Marimo_!"

In less than a minute, they were at each other's throats. Zoro already had one of his swords drawn and ready, Sanji's left foot was off the ground and poised to strike. Even on a happy day such as this, their rivalry couldn't just stay quiet without rearing its ugly head for at least a moment.

"Hey! Both of you guys shut up and stop fighting!" Nami yelled as she clobbered both of them over the head. How she got over to them so quickly and without either of them noticing was beyond them. She really must've been light on her feet as a cat burglar to sneak up on both of them like that. "I don't want to hear you two fighting just yet!" she said as she walked back down the stairs to the ship deck.

"Of course, Nami-_swaaaan_!" Sanji cooed with the usual lovestruck look in his eye. "Whatever you say."

"Always the kiss-ass…" Zoro mumbled as he sheathed his sword and sat back down.

"What did you say, Shitty Swordsman?" He was already back in a fighting stance when he glanced over to Nami and saw the fire in her brown eyes. He clicked his tongue, blowing the cigarette smoke out of his mouth. "Forget it…"

About ten minutes passed before either of them said anything to each other.

"Oi, Ero-cook," Zoro grunted.

"What?"

"I want to know what you were going to say earlier."

"Like hell."

"Come on and tell me."

"No, you shitty moss ball."

"Stop calling me that!"

"Then stop harassing me!" Zoro simply grunted his response. Sanji looked down at the green haired man with an annoyed look and the twitch of his curled eyebrow. "Is it really that important?" A shrug was the only response he got. Sanji sighed - breathing out cigarette smoke as he did - and leaned down on the railing.

"I was just going to say that…" Sanji looked around awkwardly as he noticed Zoro's head turn in his direction. The scene on the deck was ample distraction. "It's good to see you after these years." A moment of silence passed between the two men. "I mean, it's good to see everyone - especially Robin and Nami - after two years. I just… it's just good to see you after these years because… damn," he mumbled as he took another drag of his cigarette. "I think of you as a decent friend, you shitty swordsman. You're like a brother to me. Even if you're annoying as hell—" Zoro raised an eyebrow "—I'd miss having your green haired ass around."

"Wow."

"Is that all—"

"Who knew you were such a fucking sap, 7?"

Sanji scowled. "Shut up!"

"Nice to know I mean so much to you," Zoro chuckled.

"Oh, shut—"

"_Sanji! More meat! Meat, meat, meat!_" Saved by the usually annoying demands of his captain, the blond cook moved just a little bit faster than normal towards the kitchen. Zoro laughed and drained the rest of his sake bottle.

"Some for me, too, Ero-cook!"

"Like hell!"

"Is that how you talk to your _brother_?"

"Oh, shut up!" Sanji grumbled as he disappeared into his kitchen.

* * *

><p>It probably wasn't in his best judgment to say something like <em>that<em> to someone like _that_… and he just knew he was going to pay the price for that…


End file.
